Editor:
Most of us are familiar with the routine of buying fuel for our vehicles. We go to the gas station, fill our tank, and pay based on what the meter on the pump says - a fair and equal transaction. The merchant does what they want with our money, and we do what we want with the gasoline. Would it make any sense to allow the merchant to install a wireless device on our cars so they could monitor how much fuel we used, or when we drove? Would we allow them to use the device to turn the fuel off and on?
When we buy apples the cashier puts them on the scale and we pay based on weight, which is another fair trade. The store owner is free to do as they wish with our money and we are free to enjoy the apples as we like. Should we let the store owner install cameras in our kitchens to monitor how and when we use them? Or a remote control lock on our fridge to ration our use?
The amount of electricity we consume is constantly measured and the utility bills us for it every two months. They do what they want with our money and we get to use the power as it pleases us. Buy now they want to install a communications network on top of our electrical system and use it to gather our data and control devices in our homes. And they want us to trust our personal information to mega-corporation Cap Gemini Ernst & Young. In return we will get a display that plugs into the wall and tells us how much money we owe them; and a little more radiation; just in case we weren't getting enough.
Stanley Scott
Gibsons
